Lord Cunningham was staring directly at Hawkins now. Rafe’s clear understanding of Cunningham’s intentions came as a surprise to him. Cunningham was used to thinking of himself as the smartest person in the room, any room, and he never would have considered a pirate captain with little formal education, no military training, and no experience in top-level strategic planning as his equal in this type of Machiavellian thinking. He could not have known Hawkins had been doing this since he was a teenager. The fact he was still alive was testimony as to how successful he had been. It struck Cunningham that Hawkins had been on to him from the very beginning. He now realized the reason Hawkins had reacted as he had to Captain Mallory going along as an observer. It was not because Hawkins was opposed to Mallory, but because Hawkins had seen the real purpose behind the observer tactic, and didn’t want to go against Mallory in the Badlands in the future. Hawkins had given no indication of this knowledge and, if not for this Zerbe incident, Hawkins would never have acknowledged he understood Cunningham’s scheme. Cunningham knew he would have to reconsider this entire matter, but not here and not now.
Hawkins still sat in a relaxed pose in his chair. He had the air of a man idly passing the time of day while discussing the weather. He stared back at Cunningham with a neutral expression. Despite the posture and the expression, he still managed to convey he had no intention of letting this slide. Although he gave no indication of knowing his people had shifted positions, everyone in the room had no doubt he knew exactly where everyone was.
Cunningham was content to wait a few seconds in silence to see how far Hawkins would let this go. A few seconds passed, and then a few more. Nobody moved or said anything. Neither man pulled his gaze from the other.
Cunningham broke first. “Perhaps we can dispense with the Captain’s presence at this time.”
Hawkins did not press the issue but merely nodded in an agreeable manner. Cunningham turned to Captain Zerbe. “Thank you for attending, Captain.”
Zerbe was more than willing to avert a crisis. She stood up. “Of course, Your Lordship.” She gave a respectful nod to Admiral Barrett. “Admiral.” She gathered her notes and departed without a glance at any other attendees.
“If we could continue,” Cunningham made a palm up gesture of invitation to Hawkins who replied, “Of course.”
The two men stared at each other a few seconds longer. In those few seconds, Cunningham knew he did not want Captain Raferty Hawkins as an enemy, so he decided to kill him at the earliest opportunity. And Hawkins knew it.
With that, the pirates began to move back to their original positions. Rather, almost all the pirates began to move. Killian O’Hare remained at the end of the table and Emily Legrand remained well behind the briefing group with a clear view of the entrance hatch. Nobody remarked on the lack of movement of those two, but everyone noticed.
Baby Doll took up the brief, and it was obvious she was hurrying through the remaining topics. Nobody asked questions at the conclusion. Lord Cunningham thanked all the participants and promised to provide whatever support was needed to ensure the mission was a success. Everyone moved to depart the compartment.
As the briefing broke up, Admiral Barrett spoke to Sky. “Captain Mallory, do stop in to see me for a brief moment prior to your departure. I wish a word.”
“Of course, Admiral,” Sky responded respectfully.
Several minutes later, Sky entered the Admiral’s day cabin. She saw him standing with his back to the hatch, gazing out one of the large portholes into space. He glanced toward her entrance, and waved her over to stand by him. She took a position next to him and joined him in enjoying the view. Several ships of the Home Fleet floated in nearby space and others were large gleaming lights further out. Several seconds passed in silence.
The Admiral spoke abruptly. “We should be out on the frontier carrying the war to the enemy. We serve no real purpose here.”
“Yes, Admiral.” Sky was well aware of her superior’s point of view. She believed he was right, but politics had won that particular discussion. She knew his comment was just a remark to open the conversation before he got to the real purpose for wanting to see her. She did not know what he would say, but she was certain it would not be a “give your all for the Queen and Kingdom” speech.
Barrett did not turn to her, but continued to speak while looking over his fleet. “Captain Hawkins was correct in his assessment about why you will accompany him on this mission. Did you know the true reason for your going?”
Sky noticed he referred to the pirate as captain. The Admiral had respect for the man. “Yes, Admiral. Captain Hawkins told me when I walked him to the hangar bay after the last meeting.”
Barrett turned to her as he nodded in approval. “He doesn’t miss much, but I suppose you don’t survive very long in the Badlands without that trait.” He paused as he gathered his thoughts and then continued. “At first I was opposed to you going on this mission. Several reasons. The first was, you are a good chief of staff, and I didn’t want to lose you. The second reason is, this mission is going to be a close call, and risking one of our best young commanders on it as a mere observer seemed a bit reckless to me. The third reason was the real purpose behind the observer idea. I don’t believe we should put a person among his crew to learn his methods for possible future use. Captain Hawkins was on to it from the beginning. Thus, anything you learn, he will know you have learned it, and will make adjustments. If he encounters you on some future battlefield, he knows that you know, so he will do something different. So the knowledge you return with will not be nearly as valuable as Lord Cunningham seems to believe.” Admiral Barrett paused and returned to fleet gazing. “However, I have to come to change my opinion on your participation, at least somewhat. You going on this mission might be good in one sense. You can tell Hawkins how we work. Since Lord Cunningham has been rudely surprised by our pirate friend’s grasp of the situation, I wouldn’t put it past him to reconsider his own plan. Cunningham has two squadrons held back in deep reserve. Both are commanded by personal friends of his who owe their current positions to him alone. They would respond instantly to his orders and would carry those orders out to the letter. If you weren’t on the pirate ships, I would not put it past Cunningham to move his squadrons into position to cover the pirates as they cross back to our side of the frontier after their attack. I also would not put it past him to ensure an “accident” occurred in which all the pirate ships would be destroyed. Such an incident could be easily covered up and characterized as we see fit. After all, the few people with knowledge of this mission would say it is just a bunch of damn pirates. Nobody in the Empire would care. With you on one of the ships, I don’t believe our Defense Lord would go that far.” Barrett now turned to face Sky and looked directly into her eyes. “But I wouldn’t bet my life on it and you shouldn’t either. You might want to instruct Captain Hawkins to reenter Empire space at another crossing point than that which was briefed.”
Sky should have been surprised by this talk but was not. She knew Lord Cunningham and could see this new possible development was not outside the realm of reality. “You like Captain Hawkins, don’t you?”
Barrett smiled. “I was not happy about the stunt he pulled sneaking in here, but I had to admire the nerve and expertise to pull it off. It also showed we had not fully learned our lesson that the OrCons recently tried to teach us. We are still too easy to surprise. Let’s just say I find him refreshingly honest and forthright in an age in which both qualities seem to be in short supply. He knows how to fight a war and he fights to win. I wish I could get him into our Navy and give him a squadron to command.” The Admiral smiled now. “It would have to be an independent command. He would drive any chain of command crazy. Also it would be best if none of us knew what he was up to at any given moment.” The moment of levity passed. He turned serious again. “The fact is, whatever Lord Cunningham has in store for him will be shabby indeed. Maybe necessary from his point of view, but still shabby.
I would hope I am wrong in that regard, but do take care nevertheless. Do what you can to bring him and yourself back alive. Trust no one while you’re out there… except for the pirates.” Barrett turned back to his porthole. “Never thought I would ever say that and actually mean it.”
Chapter 29
The pirates and Captain Mallory gathered in the officer’s mess for an initial briefing as the four pirate vessels departed Wanderlust. After covering routine ship’s business and status, Hawkins introduced Mallory and assigned her a bridge station at the ops section. He then got into the recent briefing on Sirocco. “We got the Zeke input as to their support for our border crossing. They will raid the Astra system next to our entry point to get the OrCons attention. Elements of their Home Fleet will carry out the sweep. This will ensure any enemy reserve forces further back in their territory will move to that sector and, hopefully, open a path for us as we pass through hostile space.”
Now Rafe turned to Sky Mallory. “What is your relationship with Lord Cunningham?”
Sky was surprised by the question. She stared at him for a moment and then answered. “We get along. As peers, we are members of the upper house. Nobody officially belongs to either political party in the upper house. It is viewed by the peers as unseemly, but we all know who is on what side. He and I are both supportive of the Party of the Realm. We see each other at social affairs, charity events, and the like. We are not particularly friends, but we are friendly acquaintances.”
Hawkins nodded as Sky asked. “Why is our relationship important?”
Tactical answered. “He is judging how the Defense Lord will react now that he knows we know his plan. I wouldn’t put it passed Cunningham to hit us as we return.” She then stared at Hawkins. “You shouldn’t have told him you know his little scheme.” Her voice carried a slightly accusing tone.
Hawkins replied, “He might call off the Batsur raid and hope the OrCons get us. He wants us to get to Murmansk and attack, but not necessarily get back.” He then shrugged as he addressed the accusation by Tactical. “I do admit my mistake, but Zerbe got to me there for a second.” He held up a hand and then pointed a finger at himself. “I blame myself.”
He saw Blondie squirm in her chair and cast her eyes down. She clearly felt some guilt in the situation. “Blondie, not your fault. Zerbe clearly picked on you because you work for her. She is a bureaucrat who advanced by playing within the rules and ensuring everyone else does the same. She is without vision or imagination. She is not the only one like that in your military, and that is one of the reasons your Empire was surprised at the war’s outset, and why you’re losing now. War has a way of rooting those types out and banishing them. Unfortunately, the process is accompanied by a high body count. Trust me when I tell you Admiral Barrett already has a target vector lined up on her. You noticed he did nothing in the briefing to support her. The only reason she has survived this long is because Home Fleet is not in combat. When that changes, as soon as Zerbe makes one mistake, and she will, Admiral Barrett is going to get rid of her so fast she will be back on Zelenka for a week before she figures out what happened.”
Blondie stared at him. “How do you know this?”
Rafe smiled at her. “I’m a good commander, and I recognize other good commanders. Barrett knows Home Fleet will only be committed to combat under dire circumstances with defeat staring the Aurora Empire in the face. In that kind of situation, his margin of error will be small, and he won’t have the luxury or desire to keep bad staff officers. She will be one mistake away from packing her bags and she will make that mistake. The only difference between your Admiral and me is, he will send her home in semi disgrace. I would shove her out an airlock.”
Baby Doll stepped into the conversation. “Raferty didn’t tell Cunningham anything he didn’t already know.” The others turned to her as she continued. “I’ve been watching Cunningham watch our two captains.” She nodded at Raferty and Sky, and her voice assumed a sugary tone. “He sees how you two interact, and he knows you really, really like each other.” The tone switched back. “The only way you’ll fight each other is if you get married first. Cunningham has already switched to his Plan B, whatever that is.”
Rafe took over as he looked at Mallory. “Which brings us back to our original question about your relationship with the Defense Lord. Let me refine the question. Would your presence on this ship stop him from attacking us as we return from this mission?”
Sky did not hesitate. “No,” she stated emphatically.
“Good to know. We will plan accordingly.”
The meeting covered several more items and then adjourned. As participants stood and departed, Rafe spoke to Sky. “Show you to your quarters, and then the ship?”
“Sounds good.” Sky picked up her bag from the corner where she had dropped it prior to the meeting, and followed Hawkins out the hatch and toward the bridge. Hawkins pulled up at the last hatch before the passageway entered the bridge and held the door for Sky to enter the compartment first. She stepped into the day cabin, which served as Rafe’s office and briefing room. Directly in front of Sky was a small briefing table with six chairs around it. To the right of the table was the hatch going out onto the bridge. To the left was a desk with two chairs in front of it and the desk owner’s chair behind it. A cold unit was at the end of the desk against the side bulkhead, within a short roll of the desk chair. Behind the desk on the back bulkhead were two hatches. On the opposite bulkhead was a long couch with an end table on each side and shelves above the three pieces of furniture. On one of the end tables was an ornate chess set ready for a match.
None of this registered immediately on Sky, as her attention was captured by the one obvious feature in the compartment. Along the bulkhead behind the desk were several built-in bookcases, and many, many books. They were all the old-fashioned type. Words printed on paper and bound in heavier paper or hard shells. There were also three rows of bookshelves stuffed with books on the opposite bulkhead above the couch.
Sky scanned the books on the shelves, and then her eyes drifted to the desk. She spied one lone book there. She stepped to the desk and picked up it up. It was a thick paperback. Sky turned the well-worn book in her hand until she could read the title. 1000 Places to See in the Universe. Sky knew this book. It was essentially a travel guide to beautiful and exotic locations on dozens of planets. She knew it was updated periodically but had been published as a computer download for several decades so this book was many, many years old.
“Looks well read.” She bounced it in her hand. “A favorite?”
“I page through it on a regular basis. In fact, one of the recommended sites in the book is on your home planet. Rainbow Falls. I assume you’ve been there.”
Sky smiled at the memories. “Several times. I think it is an informal planetary law all natives must visit Rainbow Falls at least five times during their lives.” She went on, “It is really a series of falls dropping several hundred meters. Two rivers start it off at the top and one more joins in about half way down. The water drops into small pools at different levels which are continually overflowing to create eleven separate falls.”
“Do you really see a bunch of rainbows?”
“Yes. The falls throw out so much mist when you stand close to them, it is like being in a rain shower. You look up into the mist and see dozens of rainbows at the same time. And because of the roar, when standing next to the falls, you can’t talk. You can barely think. The falls can be heard five kilometers away. The area is kept pristine in its natural state, so there are only trails going up to five observation points. It is a very nice hike to a gorgeous destination. One of the points is actually behind a fall so you can put your hand out into the falling water. It is ice cold.”
Hawkins smiled at Mallory, not just at her description of a beautiful sight, but also at her enthusiasm in describing it. “I’ll have to see it sometime.”
Sky held the book higher in between them. “How many sights in here have
you seen?”
She instantly realized it was the wrong question. A logical one, but the wrong one. Something flashed across Hawkins face. It was there and gone so fast Sky couldn’t tell what it was. Pain? Anger? Regret? All three? There was no way to know now. Rafe looked at the book in her hand and tried to smile. Despite his best attempt, it was a little wan.
“I’ve never seen any of those places.” He paused and looked at her directly. “I’m under no illusion as to what I am. I am a pirate. I spend eighty percent of my time in space running and fighting, and the other twenty percent on hellhole planets doing deals in bars and back alleys with criminals and lowlifes. There are more than a few people who would also put me in those categories. I am also under no illusion as to how it will all end either. And that will probably be sooner rather than later.”
Payback Is a Given: Pirates of the Badlands Series Book 2 Page 22